“This is me with Gerry Marsden and Noel Gallagher – it’s like three generations of pop: Gerry from the 60s, Madness from the late 70s/80s onwards and Oasis from the 90s. It was taken at a Eurosport event in 1999, just after Madness had got back together to record Wonderful, the first studio album by the original line-up for about 15 years.

I was mingling with celebs like there was no tomorrow.I was being a real pop tart at this do – I don’t know what came over me, but I was taking no prisoners. I was like, ‘You won’t go anywhere until you’ve had your photo taken with me.’

I’m more into memories than photos

Lee Thompson

I had a brief chat with Gerry. I knew his records when I was growing up so it was very humbling to meet him.

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'I’m more into memories than photos'

I asked him what moisturiser he used to look so youthful and who his dentist was, because he has a smashing set of railings. He asked me who my tailor was and who cut my hair.

Noel was as sharp and dry-witted as always. Oasis had done (What’s The Story) Morning Glory by then, and the Be Here Now album was out. He asked who my musical influences were and why I chose to play the saxophone.

I told him it was offered to me at an extremely good price, and it’s easy to carry around when busking.

Later the same year I met the Oasis boys again, when Madness did the Weenie Roast gig for a radio station in California. I was taking a nap, because between sound checks and gigs, there’s a lot of time on your hands.

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Madness Perform At 100 Club In London

I woke to Bedders – Mark Bedford from Madness, who’s also in my Ska Orchestra – saying, ‘Lee, Oasis have just arrived,’ and you could hear them all walking through the hallway.

I jumped up and I found that somebody had put cigarette ash all across my eyebrows while I was napping, so I had a sort of monobrow. Bedders dared me to go into Oasis’s dressing room for a kind of meet and greet, and I’m not one to turn down a dare, so I knocked on the door, strolled in and Ringo Starr’s son Zak was in there, who later played with Oasis. I honed in on him.

Noel was there and offered us a drink. It was the calm in the dressing room before the storm of their gig. I was quite drawn to Zak, though I didn’t know who he was at the time.

I asked if there was a loo I could use and the door was locked, I was hammering on it going, ‘Hurry up, I haven’t got all day!’ All of a sudden it opens and lo and behold, towering above me is Liam, going, ‘Oo are you?’ I thought he was going to be all, ‘Come on, let’s ’ave it’, but he was fine.

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Suggs and Lee Thompson of Madness performs on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury Festival 2016

I’m more into memories than photos. People ask me for selfies, but I’ve really got to be in the mood for it. When I met Eric Cantona at the airport one time, I was a bit dubious about asking, but on that day I was like, ‘Don’t you know who I am?’ Suggs [Madness’s lead singer] gets it full-on. At last year’s House of Fun weekender at Butlins Minehead, he dressed up as an Oompa Loompa, with an orange face and green hair.

So did Mike Barson from the band, and they both still got recognised. I don’t know how Suggsy handles all the attention, I wouldn’t like to be in his shoes, but he’s very professional about it. Mind you, I think he’s a bit more of a Victor Meldrew now than he used to be.”

Bite The Bullet, the new album by the Lee Thompson Ska Orchestra, is out now. Madness will be appearing at the House of Fun Weekender at Butlins Minehead on November 18 to 21 (leethompsonska.com).